7-day Cape Wine Tour

Day 1: Cape Town

Arrive Cape Town Airport and meet your Cape Town holiday host, who will transfer you to your luxury boutique hotel. Check in for 2 nights.

You will be provided with a day pass for the convenient red Hop-On Hop-Off Bus, which stops at all of Cape Town’s key sights and beaches.

You will have the option of visiting all the main city centre attractions such as museums, diamond stores, arts & craft markets or ascending Table Mountain by cable car to enjoy one of the world’s most famous views. Continue to Camps Bay beach and then explore the shops and many other attractions of the Victoria & Alfred Waterfront, which is also the centre of Cape Town’s nightlife.

Return to your hotel for an evening at your leisure.

Day 2: Constantia Winelands

Today, we go back to where it all began. The first vines were planted on the slopes of the Constantiaberg by then Governor of the Cape, Simon Van Der Stel back in 1685 on the farm Groot Constantia.

Starting with a detailed cellar tour followed by comprehensive tasting – Napoleon is said to have favoured the sweet wines of Constantia above all other. After the tasting there is an opportunity to explore the beautiful estate grounds and perhaps visit the estate museum.

Your personal host/guide will then discuss the various wine estates within the Constantia area available to visit, hopefully determining those which would be most appropriate and suitable to you with regards to the style & cultivar of the wines each estate produces.

Each day, you will visit a minimum of 3 different estates, including a cellar tour and 3 wine tastings.

Some of the estates within the Constantia area include Groot Constantia, Kleine Constantia, Constantia Uitsig, Steenberg and the Cape Point Vineyards.

Lunch, which is included in the package, will be either with an acclaimed restaurant or a specifically chosen estate offering picnic lunches. Today, La Colombe Restaurant at Constantia Uitsig has been reserved – it has been acclaimed as one of the world’s top 50 restaurants and voted the best restaurant in Africa.

Return to your hotel for an evening at your leisure.

Day 3: Stellenbosch Winelands

Enjoy a leisurely breakfast before checking out of your hotel. Today we transfer to the town of Stellenbosch, the second oldest town in South Africa, and the Stellenbosch Wine of Origin Region – home to over 20% of all the vines planted in SA, with an excess of 130 wine estates.

So with such a wide choice it is going to be a busy day of wine tastings. Be sure to sample South Africa’s very own indigenous wine varietals, namely Pinotage, which was ‘born’ in Stellenbosch.

Some of the estates within the Stellenbosch area include Spier, Blaauwklippen, Kanonkop, Beyerkloof, Meerlust, Neil Ellis, Rustenburg and Waterfort and many more.

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Today lunch is reserved at the Volkskombuis, a restaurant specializing in local Cape cuisine and offering a wide range of Stellenbosch wines.

After lunch, your guide will take you through a short guided walk to marvel some of Stellenbosch unique history, culture and natural beauty.

End the day with a wine tasting in the Jonkerhoek Valley before returning to your hotel in the town centre of Stellenbosch. Check in for four nights.

Day 4: Franshoek Winelands

After a leisurely breakfast we visit the Franschoek Wine Valley, Valley of the Huguenots, one of the premier destinations in the World of Wine with forty three wine farms, including some of South Africa’s most respected names.

Not surprising when one considers that this fertile ground is where the French first made wine in South Africa 300 years ago. Today, that noble tradition is carried forward by the members of the Vignerons de Franschoek.

All the noble cultivars and classic styles are on show here. From superb whites such as Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay, Semillon and Chenin Blanc to the rich reds of Cabernet Sauvignon, Shiraz, Pinot Noir and Merlot. Not to mention the valley’s renowned methode Cap Classique Sparkling wines and Ports.

But Franschhoek’s finer tastes don’t end with wine. The picturesque valley also offers some of South Africa’s most acclaimed restaurants and with everything from delicious Cape country fare to sublime French cuisine. Not surprising that the area is known as the “Wine and Food Capital of the Cape” with menus to suit every taste and every pocket.

Today lunch is reserved at the Boschendal Estate we you can enjoy their famous picnic hamper, set in the magnificent garden under the Drakenstein Mountains.

Some of the estates within the Stellenbosch area include Graham Beck, Haut Espoir, La Motto, Boschendal, Moreson, Vrede & Lust.

Return to your hotel for an evening at your leisure.

Day 5: Paarl, Wellington and Robertson Winelands

Enjoy a leisurely breakfast.

Today we visit 3 wine areas, each with there own individual characteristics and taking in some of the winelands’ most scenic areas.

We begin in the Paarl area. Set under Paarl Rock, a huge granite structure, Paarl is recognized for both large international wine companies as well as the small micro producers who all produce quality wines.

Some of the estates within the Paarl area include Nederburg, Backberg, Nelson Creek, Seidelberg and Boland Kelders.

From Stellenbosch we head to the Wellington Wine and Brandy Route. The fact that the majority of South Africa’s vine-cutting nurseries (better known as ‘stokkieskwekerye’) are found in the Wellington area is due to the excellent soils and climate of the region.

The Wellington wine and brandy route is small and compact and the cellars within easy driving distance of each other. Some of the estates within the Wellington area include Bovlei, Diemersfontein, Mont Du Toit, Oude Wellington and Welgegund.

From Wellington we head over the Du Tiot’s Kloof Mountain onto the on the popular Route 62 and the Robertson Wine Valley. Nestled between the Langeberg and Riviersonderend Mountain ranges, our wine route offers a landscape of roads fringed with flowers and trees, majestic mountains and a river running through the valley. However above all, one remembers the world class wines.

Some of the estates within the Wellington area include Arabelle, MacGregor, Rietvallei and the Klipdrift Brandy Distillers.

Today lunch is reserved at the Fraaiuitzicht in the Roberston Valley.

Return to your hotel for an evening at your leisure.

Day 6: Hermanus Winelands

Today we are able to enjoy some land based whale watching ( seasonal: July to Nov ) while en route to the Hemel en Aarde Valley ( Heaven & Earth Valley ) outside the seaside town of Hermanus. The valley is not only spectacularly beautiful but is home to the country’s top Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. The close proximity to the sea is the major advantage for the vineyards in the valley. The cellars are also all situated offering spectacular views of the valley and ocean below.

Some of the estates within the Hemel-en-Aaarde Valley include Hamilton Russell, Bouchard Finlayson, Sumaridge and Newton Johnson.

Today lunch is reserved in the town of Hermanus offering spectacular views over Walker Bay, a protect whale sanctuary.

En route home we stop at the Wine Village, one of South Africa’s best, with the largest stock of SA wine under one roof. Time to stock up supplies for your journey home.

Return to your hotel for an evening at your leisure.

Day 7: Stellenbosch

Enjoy at leisure morning at your hotel. Time to do your last minute shopping in the town of Stellenbosch, enjoy a leisurely lunch & glass of your new favourite SA wine before your transfer back to Cape Town International for your continued holiday in South Africa or your journey home.